In Face of Impending Humanitarian Disaster, Islamic Countries Pledge Aid for Afghanistan
Citizens of devastated country will go hungry this winter, summit delegates say
[Islamabad] The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held a summit in the Pakistani capital this week and announced the launch of a series of steps to address the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.
The extraordinary meeting of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers was hosted by Islamabad, at the initiative of Saudi Arabia.
The conference approved a special Islamic Development Fund to assist the war-battered country. All 57 member nations will contribute to the OIC Trust, but the 31-point resolution was short on specifics and gave no figure for financial assistance.
Saudi Arabia has allocated 1 billion riyals (about $266 million) for Afghanistan to fight poverty and hunger.
The summit was attended by 70 delegates from the member states, and representatives of the UN, US, UK, Germany, Japan, Italy and several international humanitarian aid organizations.
The United States should look at the 40 million Afghan people and the Taliban government separately
Addressing the inaugural session, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan warned that if the world does not act, Afghanistan could become the “biggest man-made crisis.”
During his keynote speech, Khan also said, “The United States should look at the 40 million Afghan people and the Taliban government separately.”
He added that the OIC should play a role in eradicating Islamophobia.
A wave of Islamophobia has grown since 9/11, Khan said, adding that “terrorism and Islam were linked and the term ‘radical Islam’ was invented.”
Afghanistan’s echoing economic crisis could trigger a humanitarian crisis, which subsequently will lead to further instability, and impact regional and international peace
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud told the conference he feared “Afghanistan’s echoing economic crisis could trigger a humanitarian crisis, which subsequently will lead to further instability, and impact regional and international peace.”
The joint resolution unanimously adopted underlined the importance of investing in human development for achieving sustainable peace and development in Afghanistan.
The representatives expressed deep alarm that “continued freezing of Afghanistan’s overseas assets is exacerbating urgent cash-flow complications, including payment of remuneration to public officials, and hindering the provision of essential public and social services to the people of Afghanistan.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, speaking at a joint news conference alongside OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha in Islamabad on Sunday, told reporters, “A humanitarian trust fund will be established to help Afghans in terms of humanitarian assistance.
“The conference is agreed to launch a food security program for Afghanistan in order to mitigate the growing food shortages in the country,” Qureshi said.
The Afghan disaster will not only impact regional instability but also the world in the form of a mass influx of refugees
Farrukh Habib, Pakistani minister of state for information and broadcasting, told The Media Line, “The OIC meeting will yield positive results.
“The objective behind hosting the meeting was to draw global attention to the food shortage, the dilemma of children, and the financial difficulties in Afghanistan,” he said. “Human tragedy has arisen in war-torn Afghanistan and a strong voice was raised from the OIC platform to prevent this disaster.
“The Afghan disaster will not only impact regional instability but also the world in the form of a mass influx of refugees,” Habib said.
On Monday, the OIC appointed Ambassador Tariq Ali Bakheet, a Sudanese diplomat, as its special envoy for Afghanistan.
Thomas West, the US special representative for Afghanistan, who also attended the conference, praised the decision to appoint a special envoy and said in a tweet, “A productive OIC session with important outcomes − not least the creation of a humanitarian trust fund and the naming of OIC Special Envoy. The US warmly welcomes the OIC’s role and contributions.”
West met with Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa in Rawalpindi on Monday and hailed Pakistan’s efforts to organize and host the OIC summit.
According to Pakistan’s Armed Forces Media Wing, “The visiting dignitary appreciated Pakistan’s role in the Afghan situation, special efforts for effective Pak-Afghan border management, and pledged to play his part for further improvement in diplomatic cooperation with Pakistan at all levels.”
Androulla Kaminara, the European Union ambassador to Islamabad, congratulated Pakistan for successfully holding the summit.
In a series of tweets on Monday, she said the EU’s staff in Afghanistan was working day and night to reach Afghans through the United Nations and other humanitarian partners, adding that the European Union had provided €3 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.
We are confident that the international community will understand the dilemma of the Afghan people, forgetting the bitterness of the past. We want friendly and close relations with all countries
Zabiullah Mujahid, the deputy minister of information and chief spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, told The Media Line, “No doubt that there is a drought in Afghanistan and the people are suffering, but we are confident we can tackle it.
“The outcome of the conference in Islamabad is encouraging,” he added. “We are grateful to the Islamic countries and the other participants who attended the conference and realized the plight of the Afghan people.
“We are confident that the international community will understand the dilemma of the Afghan people, forgetting the bitterness of the past. We want friendly and close relations with all countries,” Mujahid said.
The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan set the country decades back
Ahmad Wali Massoud, chairman of the Massoud Foundation and a former Afghan ambassador to the United Kingdom, told The Media Line, “Afghanistan is undergoing a tragic situation which it has never before witnessed.
“The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan set the country decades back,” he said.
“Afghanistan is becoming the big victim of a deep geopolitical game in the region; Pakistan has played the most important role,” he said. “No doubt Pakistan has been following its ‘strategic depth strategy’ as well as other regional interests.”
I believe that the ISIS threat is overstated and that people are taking their eyes off al-Qaida, which has remained quiet
Prof. Adrian Calamel, an expert on the Middle East and terrorism at the State University of New York’s Finger Lakes Community College, told The Media Line, “I believe that the ISIS threat is overstated and that people are taking their eyes off al-Qaida, which has remained quiet.
“This is something to watch. Once the charm offensive ends, al-Qaida may come out of the shadows; right now, it would only hurt the Taliban’s proximate goals,” he said.
“Pakistan is trying to soften the image of the Taliban because they need humanitarian assistance in the winter and can’t afford the bill of being the sole state sponsor,” Calamel said. “Pakistan is painting the Taliban as rational actors so Western countries, including the UN, help with the upcoming winter.
“This is on Pakistan; they got what they wanted with the Taliban ruling Afghanistan, so if they are looking for financial assistance to stave off the chaos, then [they should] turn to all the countries that were Taliban cheerleaders: Qatar, Iran, China, Russia,” the professor continued.
“The West should not provide a dime; food will only be used as a weapon and a means of control,” Calamel said.
Adeeb Ul Zaman Safvi, a Karachi-based veteran defense analyst and a retired Pakistan Navy captain, claimed: “The OIC conference was convened by Saudi Arabia at the behest of the USA, while Pakistan has been made the host.”
Safvi told The Media Line, “Pakistan recently declined a US invitation to a virtual conference on democracy, which sent alarms down the corridors of power. After Pakistan’s refusal, keeping in mind the strategic location and regional importance of Pakistan, the world powers were apparently upset. So it was decided to highlight Pakistan’s role; this mega-event was instituted by utilizing Saudi Arabia’s influence.”
The presence at the Islamabad conference of “UN Under-Secretary-General [for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths], president of the Islamic Development Bank [Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser] and representatives of the EU and other Western countries signifies a US push behind this large and multifaceted gathering,” he said.
“There are no intrigues or hidden agenda to take advantage of the chaotic situation. In fact, Pakistan should have asked the Afghan government to raise the issue of war damages as the victim of 20 years of conflict,” Safvi said.
Afghanistan is on the verge of a humanitarian disaster. The OIC meeting brings a spark of hope for the millions of Afghan people who are facing acute food shortage; millions of children and pregnant and nursing women are at risk of acute malnutrition
Umar Karim, a visiting fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies in London, focuses on Pakistan’s political and security environment within its region.
He told The Media Line, “Pakistan desires to push regional and international actors to engage with the Taliban side by side to devise indirect mechanisms that can be used to convey humanitarian aid to common Afghans so it cannot be used for any political purposes.
“Afghanistan is on the verge of a humanitarian disaster. The OIC meeting brings a spark of hope for the millions of Afghan people who are facing acute food shortage; millions of children and pregnant and nursing women are at risk of acute malnutrition,” Karim said.
Asma Khalid, an Islamabad-based senior research associate at the Center of Pakistan and International Relations, told The Media Line, “Pakistan supported the integration of the Taliban all along since their removal from power [by the US-led invasion in 2001] and the formation of a new political system in Kabul.
“Pakistan had long been campaigning and suggesting to the United States, since the early years of the US-led ‘war on terror,’ that there was no military solution to the Afghan conflict,” she said. “Political negotiations are the only possible means to secure peace and political stability in Kabul and the region as well.
“In fact, Pakistan is trying to convince the world that Afghanistan should not once again be abandoned, as it was completely overlooked by the world after the end of the Cold War,” Khalid said.
